“Don’t fear failure. Not failure, but low aim, is the crime. In great attempts it is glorious even to fail.”
Bruce Lee
Another week of working and exploring the city of Nairobi. Here are some of the highlights.
Sensei Hayden
“I’ve crossed the border into Kenya, see you soon!”
I received this message from Hayden on Friday morning. His visa was finally approved and he was on a bus from Arusha, Tanzania. I quickly pulled up Google Maps to try and get an ETA. We’d have to leave the hospital early today. We took an Uber into downtown Nairobi and waited for Hayden’s arrival. After 15 or 20 minutes, we were able to spot an mzungu in the back of an approaching bus. Hayden’s here! He seemed very relieved to see us both. His phone had stopped working at the border so he would have had a hard time getting to the Amani Center on his own. We got him back in another Uber and showed him his room. As we were showing him around, we noticed that the monks were having a celebration for Father Gabriel. It was his feast day. They invited us to watch some football (soccer) and drink some Johnnie Walker with them. It’s impossible to say no to an offer like that. Hayden will have to settle in later. After the celebration, we go to a mall for some American food. We settle on a couple large pizzas for the three of us. Hayden has been in Tanzania for the last month and is dying for a taste of home. Trenton and I realize how lucky we are to have these options at our fingertips all the time.
After supper we decided to show Hayden a little of the nightlife in Nairobi. Whiskey, Tusker beer, chicken shawarma, and a couple of fried goat hearts were all happily consumed. Thankfully, Trenton drew a hard line at matumbo ya mbuzi (goat stomach/intestine). Neither of us knew Hayden before he arrived, so we were both a little apprehensive about adding a third volunteer. Less than 12 hours into Hayden’s arrival and all my fears are gone. Hayden is a great guy who is ready to make the most of his 3 months here. It’s also already proven extremely handy to have someone around who’s fluent in Swahili (he spent last year in Tanzania as a Benedictine Volunteer).
Day at the Dojo
Lucas is one of the best guys I know. He teaches karate in the slum to anyone who comes to his practice time, free of charge. He’s been doing this weekly for over 8 years. He commands the respect of the street kids in a way that no one else can. He works with Alfajiri to get kids off the streets, off drugs, and back into school. He is also one of the best motivational speakers I’ve heard. All of this means that when Lucas talks, we listen. On Wednesday he mentioned that Ian, another member of the Alfajiri staff, would be competing in a karate competition on Saturday. We knew we had to go, even though none of us had ever seen a karate competition before. We were given a rough location (it’s just across the street from Safari Park!) and told to be there no later than 9AM.
After a long Friday night, getting up at 7AM wasn’t easy. Once we got to Safari Park we asked everyone we saw if they knew where the karate competition was. No luck. Finally we were able to get John (another Alfajiri guy) on the phone and get some real directions. Our search took some serious time; we didn’t walk into the building until 9:15 AM. As we entered we saw a couple kids in uniform warming up and playing. The place was mostly empty. Lucas and Ian were nowhere to be found.
Around 10AM people started streaming in and the competition started. Four older students (mid-20s) did solo demonstrations of their karate skills, with one of them receiving a new belt. Ian arrived in his street clothes a little later on. We asked him what time he would be competing… “around 1PM at the earliest.” We decided to go to a nearby mall and get Hayden a sim card for his phone while we wait. We get back a little after 1 and watch younger students compete head-to-head. The fighting is about control and technique, not hurting your opponent. Instead of throwing a punch or kick normally, you must pull the force out of the blow right before making contact. It’s very interesting to watch, and not always executed well by the children. As time goes on, the competitors get older. It is fun to watch, but there is still no sign of Ian starting. Lucas comes over at 5:30 and lets us know that the competition will be continued tomorrow; too many people attended and they won’t be able to finish today. It was fun to go and watch karate, but we were all a little disappointed to miss watching Ian compete. Luckily, Lucas was able to send us a video of the fight the next day. Ian tied, 2-2.
This isn’t the first time we’ve noticed a disconnect between American time and Kenyan time. It’s easy for me to get impatient or frustrated when events don’t start on time. The best antidote I’ve found so far is to look around and find something to do in the meantime. Talking to a stranger, watching the children practice karate, or sitting back and observing the world around me. Admittedly, this only works because I have no hard deadlines to meet here (besides 6:30AM Mass). I still prefer American time, but Kenyan time will definitely improve my patience and ability to entertain myself.
Thanks for reading!